[$] Dawning Shadows

[Rent_junkie]

"You're not a very good liar Erik. It's okay if you make other friends. I want you too." Remus smiled taking the shortcake. "Thank you. I guess you already ate then?"  

[ShadowEternal]

Erik sighed sadly. "They weren't friends. Just...people thinking they can tell me what to do." His smile returned as Remus took the cake. "If I actually made any friends, I would have told you. For now, you're my only friend here." He pulled out the food he grabbed for himself, a chicken burrito wrapped up in a cheese burrito. "I know this looks bad, but I have a strange craving for it."  

[Rent_junkie]

"So bullies?" Remus frowned and sat up a little bit more. "What did they say to you? Whatever it was it was probably just because they were jealous you are already more powerful than them and you just started."  

[ShadowEternal]

"No, at least, I don't think so. They had nothing to really say...about...me." Erik sighed, wondering if he should continue. "They told me some like me shouldn't be roommates with you. That you're...dangerous." The hand not holding his burrito scratched at the material of his pants. "I told them you're my friend, no matter what they say." He looked up at Remus. "Even if you do turn out to be dangerous, you haven't done anything bad to me so far, thus, their words mean nothing."  

[Rent_junkie]

Remus sighed softly. "I guess I should have been more up front with you. There are rumors around the school about my motivation behind my research. Nobody seems to believe I could want a treatment or cure for Werewolves if I don't have some connection to them. So theories range from I have a family member that is one or was killed by one to I keep a bunch somewhere breeding them to make more weres. That one is the most bizarre of the theories I've heard."  

[ShadowEternal]

Erik listened to Remus as he ate, attentive but with a strange look upon his face. "But they are rumors, as you say." He smiled. "And so what if you have a connection? A motivation exists to drive someone to achieve an end goal of some sort. As long as the end doesn't justice any means, I see no problem with it."

He wiped at his mouth with a napkin. "Though, I find it interesting. If being related, having a relative killed, or breeding are all rumors. It's some wonder their first thought wasn't you're one yourself. Though, given the taboos you mentioned before, that'd probably be whole other can of worms since you're a student here." He let out a heavy sigh as he stretched, eyes closed so he wouldn't have seen Remus' immediate reaction.  

[Rent_junkie]

"Oh no there are. I just think of that one as in between the two extremes." Remus sighed. It sounded like Erik thought it would be bad if he was one and here. He really didn't want him finding out now. He wanted to keep his friend. It was also more proof that they wouldn't be good together.  

[ShadowEternal]

"Ah, I see." Erik finished eating his burrito. "But you know, I don't think it'd be a bad thing." He wiped his hands. "Back home, there's this weird book series called Ghoulish Days. It was one of my favorites in high school. The idea was a school for monsters so they could safely learn." He smiled. "It was really cool. There were chupacabras, all sorts of cryptids, and kaiju for students and teachers. I used to dream of going to a school like that."

He looked up at Remus with shining eyes. "But now that I'm here, I'm trying not to remember so much of it. Even though it's only been a few days, I'm already realizing that reality here is different. I don't know the rules. Might as well be a child again..." He laughed. "Hey, are there any magical creatures that are students here, though? Maybe a teacher? Oh man, I just imagine Gojira (actually G*dz*ll*) as a teacher! A Kaiju teacher, imagine that! I wonder what he'd teach us? How to shoot laser beams or how to generate that electro-radiation field he generates to heal himself and attack?"  

[Rent_junkie]

Remus smiled and relaxed some hearing Erik talking like he usually did. "Yeah I don't think I have ever met one before. But they could teach anything. They would need to know regular subjects as well."

"I don't think it would be so bad to know a werewolf either. I mean especially since I am trying to come up with a way to help them either get better or make their transformations better."  

[ShadowEternal]

Erik's eyes lit up. "So that's how it works. Aw, man, what about dragons? Learning how to breath the elements like one would be amazing!" He focused when Remus spoke about werewolves again.

"Well, I don't really know anything about that. I'm trying not to based assumptions off of the lore of my world, since it's probably all incorrect. I have simply observed how everyone else seems to react to certain questions I ask or how I perceive things."  

[Rent_junkie]

Remus smiled. "I wish more people felt like you. We have those old fairy tales too that speak of wolves just killing people or animals for fun and they aren't like that. So nobody wants to give werewolves a chance. Also because there have been bad ones through out history but, the good ones don't want to come forward because they get judged when people find out. There aren't even laws protecting werewolves in jobs and housing. They're allowed to be fired or kicked out of their homes for just being one.

That's why some form communities together that have been branded wolf packs. That in turn makes people even more uncomfortable around them." Remus sighed. "Its not good."  

[ShadowEternal]

"That's weird...and odd. Wolves are animals with preferred pack mentality. They live based of the roles they developed for survival. Werewolves are half-people, aren't they? Then, fundamentally, aren't they on the same level as people with persistent or terminal illnesses?" The more Erik was learning about the magic world, a little less disillusioned about it. And yet... "So, your research...it's also another form of magic, right? If magic did this to them, then surely magic can fix them, right!?"

He looked at Remus with sad eyes, he truly felt bad to hear such a thing was badly harming people.  

[Rent_junkie]

"Yes they really are. I mean while their wolves they may be more instinct driven but, they are still human. That also means though they do have just as much chance as any other human of being good or bad. I've been to a couple different packs. They are really nice communities but, there are a lot of weres that feel like if they are treated like their evil maybe they should just avoid none weres at all costs."

Remus sighed. "That is the idea. That there must be some form of magic that can trest or cure them. My specialty is puzzle magic so I thought I might be able to figure out the cause at least. But I feel like I need more than just me working on this."  

[ShadowEternal]

"Wow, you really do care about them. I'm glad someone like you is in their corner." Erik then thought of something. "Is it possible my magic can help? I mean, not right now, obviously. But later, when I become way better at this. Would you let me help?"  

[Rent_junkie]

Remus light up. "Really you would help? I think that would be a great help. I feel like your magic could help a lot. I would welcome your help if you still want to when you are done with your schooling."